Pilobolus Dance Theater Presents Two Unique Programs of American Premieres and Classic Works

The internationally acclaimed Pilobolus Dance Theater returns to NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts, November 16 – December 4th, 2016, with two exhilarating programs mixing dance, physical theater, short film, and Pilobolus’ surrealistic and magical physical language. The two unique programs will feature nine works, including the New York premieres of "Thresh/Hold" and "Wednesday Morning, 11:45," as well as revivals of Pilobolus classics "Day 2" and "Gnomen," and collaborations with Penn and Teller ("[esc]") and alt-band OK Go ("All is Not Lost").

PROGRAM A

"On The Nature of Things" (2014), performed by three dancers balanced on a two-foot wide column rising above the stage, explores the power of iconic bodies as storytellers.

"All Is Not Lost" (2011) is the live companion to Pilobolus' video collaboration with the Grammy-winning rock band OK Go.

"Thresh|Hold" (2015), a New York premiere created in collaboration with the Olivier Award-winning dance and theater choreographer Javier De Frutos (Cabaret), is a physically daring quintet that takes us through the labyrinthine mind of a young woman as she confronts lost love.

"[esc]" (2013): Penn & Teller, the supreme masters of trickery, team with Pilobolus to create the ultimate piece of gripping, do-not-try-this-at-home choreography, with some help from TSA agents, lots of duct tape, duffel bags and stripper poles. Houdini would be impressed!

"Wednesday Morning, 11:45" (2015): This New York premiere, with an original score by Alex Dezen of the Damnwells, uses both shadow and real characters to tell a shaggy dog story about a ne'er-do-well and a bird.

"The Inconsistent Pedaler" (2014): A surrealist fable, with an original story by acclaimed Israeli author Etgar Keret and filmmaker Shira Geffen, is the story of a young girl who rides a bicycle that has the power to speed up and slow down time.

"Day Two" (1981): One of Pilobolus’ classic works, "Day Two’s" tribal atmosphere enacts the second day of the creation of the world, from its earliest forms of life to the moment at which creatures of the earth take flight into the air, set to a soundtrack from Brian Eno and Talking Heads.

Pilobolus is an internationally acclaimed collective, renowned for its unique, diverse collaborations that ignore preconceived barriers between creative disciplines. The company is committed to constantly making things, always creating collaboratively, and always exploring ways of using the human body as a graphic and expressive medium. Pilobolus was founded in 1971 by a group of Dartmouth College students with no training in dance and no interest in playing by the rules. They employed an inventive naïveté that the contemporary “Pilobolus 2.0” energetically applies to the diversity of opportunities in today’s world. The company puts its intense creative energy into action in the communities where it performs, teaching groups of people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities new ways of thinking independently, forming genuine human connection, working collaboratively, and finding beauty in unexpected places.

Pilobolus has created and toured over 120 pieces of repertory to more than 65 countries, and currently performs its work for over 300,000 people across the U.S. and around the world each year. Pilobolus recently performed with Britney Spears the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards, and on “Penn and Teller: Fool Us” on the CW Network. They have been seen the world on the “79th Annual Academy Awards Broadcast, “ and on “60 Minutes,” “Sesame Street,” “Oprah,” “Ellen” and “Late Night with Conan O'Brien.” Pilobolus has been recognized with many prestigious honors, including a Scripps Award in 2000, a Dance Magazine Award in 2010, a TED Fellowship, a 2010 Grammy® Award Nomination, and several Cannes Lion Awards at the International Festival of Creativity. In 2015, Pilobolus was named one of Dance Heritage Coalition’s “Irreplaceable Dance Treasures.”

Pilobolus will play for 20 performances, November 16 – December 4, 2016 at NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts. (See Performance Schedule on Following Page.) Tickets range from $55 - $85 (A 20% discount is available when purchasing two or more performances). Tickets may be purchased online at www.nyuskirball.org or in person at the NYU Skirball Center Box Office: Tuesday-Saturday, 12:00–6:00 P.M. NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is located at 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square, New York, New York 10012.